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Spartiatai Hoplitai (Spartan Hoplites)
|-|EB1= |-|EB2= EB1:The Spartiatai Hoplitai are still one of the best group of warriors in the entire world. Spartans can punch a hole through almost any line, and can fight extremely well with their overhand spears. EB2: The famed and feared Spartiatai are still around on the battlefields of the Hellenistic age, though they may no longer be as Laconic as one might expect. Even though their ancestors might have derided them as decadent, they still represent a formidable obstacle to any opponent, with an iron discipline and equipment of the highest quality. Description EB1: The Spartans are the greatest warriors in the entire world, or so they think, anyway. Spartan youths are trained from birth to be soldiers, and as such are ferocious fighters that often fight to the last man. They have extremely high morale and discipline, and are armed and armored more conservatively than most other Greek hoplites. Spartans still use the hoplon, but have shifted to the pilos helmet and muscled cuirass. They still use the traditional spear of the Greek hoplite to great effect. Spartans can punch a hole through almost any line, and fight extremely well with their overhand spears. They are elite, and as their description implies, very expensive and time consuming to train. Though their tactics are somewhat anachronistic, their fighting spirit leaves little doubt that they are still a formidable force. Historically, Sparta was the first experiment in what we might recognize today as militarized National Socialism. Their boys were taken from the parents as soon as they were able to walk and trained to be soldiers. They were often beaten and generally mistreated by their teachers until they reached an age where they could fight back. They engaged in heavy physical activity from an early age, exercising and practicing to fight almost as a religion. They were encouraged to steal and be crafty to survive, but were often beaten if caught. There are even some accounts of required sodomy between the young boys and sometimes even wife sharing, with the belief that a military unit should even love together! In this harsh environment, tough and fanatical soldiers are produced. When the Spartans were finally defeated and subjugated by the Romans, one of the more conservative Roman nobles is said to have wept and lamented the passing of a warrior culture without equal. The Spartan mantra is: march back in triumph with your shield, or be brought back lying upon it. ----------------------------------------------------- EB2: These men hail from the most aristocratic families of Sparte, but unlike their ancestors are less prone to follow the austere regime of life imposed by their constitution. Nevertheless these Spartan noblemen are just as capable fighters, something the Makedones know very well and paid with their lives to understand it. Only numbers prevent the Spartiatai to overcome the Makedonian yoke imposed over Hellas. Indeed these soldiers have opted for a less strict way of life, having had first hand experience with the Agoge or heard from other initiates, they chose a much easier, to their eyes, existance: war and mercenary life. Thus unhindered by precepts, through their pay and loot, they have armed themselves with the best equipment available and have gained just as much experience through countless campaigns. Hellenistic Sparte was subjected to a number of drastical changes. Contemporaries mocked it as decadent, but the records speak differently: one on one the Spartiatai still proved superior to the newer Hellenistic tactics. The real problem afflicting Sparte was the dwindling number of enfranchised citizens and of course the lack of federates and allies like in the glorious Spartan past. This was understood by the Spartan leaders of the time and they opted for a more lenient policy towards its citizens or downright radical measures. These two lines of conduct would result in internal tensions, because in the end no true Spartiates would still call himself such, had he turned back on Lykourgos and the Spartan laws. The adage that Spartan noblemen preferred war to peace could not be more accurate: in war there was less training and deprivation involved than at home in peace times. Therefore the work around, but still in line with the constitution, that the Spartiatai found was to leave Lakonike and either follow one of their leaders or take up mercenary services. Indeed while labeled as traitors or exiles, a certain number of Spartiatai is always found gathering funds, recruits and allies in concomitance with threats looming over Lakonike itself. Splendidly equipped and battle hardened, these men are still, due to ideology and experience, some of the best soldiers fighting in the traditional Hellenic manner. Usage These elite spearmen are almost identical to the Epilektoi Hoplitai (Hellenic Distinguished Hoplites) in stats besides adding a one point of morale at the cost of reducing one point of armor and a major difference of having a much large stamina. As such, they are much better at prolonged battles compared to the elite hoplites, adding with their high armor and skill as they will last even longer compared to most elite units, as befitting due to their intense training. Their only weakness is being restricted to their only AOR in the City of Sparta. Category:Units Category:Koinon Hellenon Category:Karthadastim